Students will be able to:

• Write and share reflections from one's own point of view

• Draw evidence from source material to support reflection

• Identify craft moves that display how an author develops character or theme

• Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience using a variety of figurative language techniques

• How can I use the writing of others to inform my own techniques?

• What moves do authors make to craft their pieces?

• How can reading others' writing inform my writing?

• What are the habits and strategies that students use for learning?

• Learning is a process.

• Reading allows us to appreciate, study, emulate and experiment with other writer's decisions in our own writing.

• Good readers use strategies for comprehension.

• Writers develop and grow through the daily habit of writing.

• Establishing a community of readers and writers makes the act of reading and writing more rich and enjoyable.

Students will be able to:

• establish the significance of a problem, situation, or observation

• employ narrative technique that establishes tone

• determine tone appropriate to audience

• determine how word choice will clarify tone for audience

• How does telling my story help me connect to the stories of others?

• How do I engage the audience while presenting the significance of a problem or situation?

• How do my choices (structure and organization of text, word choice, point of view) impact the telling of my story?

• Narrative is the primary mode through which we see the world and see our selves.

Students will be able to:

• Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it

• cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.

• summarize the key supporting details and ideas

• analyze and trace symbols and other figurative language throughout a text

• trace character development, and compare and contrast that character at different points within a story

• research outside sources to better under historical context of literature

• determine an author's tone and distinguish between tone and mood

• Is it natural for humans to judge others based on their place in society?

• Is it possible for an individual to truly integrate into a new social strata?

• Are all humans susceptible to the seductive nature of wealth/power?

• Although humans are "created equal," true equality has never and will never exist.

• The sacrifice of one's personal values for social advancement will often end in tragedy.

• Humans instinctively judge each other based on social standing, often with negative results.

Students will be able to:

• determine and analyze author's point of view

• examine text in order to trace character development

• analyze how and why individuals, events and ideas develop and interact throughout text

• compare and contrast different works dealing with similar themes

• analyze the structure of texts

• How does a person's own values affect the way that person views and judges others?

• What life experiences might force one to reassess his or her personal values?

• Society's definition of morality is subjective and fluid.

• An individual's perception of good and evil changes due to personal experience and/or circumstance.

• An outsider cannot justifiably judge another society's conception of morality due to lack of informed knowledge.

Students will be able to:

Reading Informational Texts

• cite strong and thorough textual evidence

• analyze what the text says explicitly

• make inferences from textual evidence

Writing

• write arguments to support claim

• distinguish the claim(s) from alternate or opposing claims,

• create an organization that establishes clear relationships among claim(s), counterclaims, reasons, and evidence

• Establish and maintain a formal style and objective tone

• produce clear and coherent writing

• assess validity/credibility of sources

• follow proper MLA citation

• How do I clearly present an argument?

• How does reliable and accurate research improve my argument?

• How does the structure of my writing help my audience understand and connect to my opinion or stance?

• Persuasive writing is a powerful way to get people to appreciate a different point of view, change their way of thinking, and/or to take action.

• Persuasive writing needs to have a clear purpose and focus and utilize logical arguments supported by facts and/or emotional appeals

• Effective persuasive writing respects audience by using appropriate, reliable and relevant information.

Students will be able to:

• identify and trace key themes and thematic elements within a work

• develop and support an arguable thesis

• evaluate content validity within a memoir

• evaluate author's purpose in writing memoir

• interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text

• determine technical, connotative, and figurative meanings,

• analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone

• How can one find happiness after a traumatic experience, or is it even possible?

• Is hope inherent in all humans?

• Are all humans redeemable?

• Redemption is possible for even the most downtrodden and/or tainted of souls.

• Humans are able to bounce back from the most horrific of tragedies.

• Nobility of the human spirit can shine through in the darkest of circumstances.

Students will be able to:

• interpret and analyze specific scenes or passages in a piece of literature

• examine author's use of figurative language to convey meaning and theme

• compare and contrast two or more interpretations of the same story or theme

• write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts

• use valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.

• How do personal experiences shape one's understanding of the meaning of life?

• How does facing mortality alter an individual's values and behaviors?

• Death is the great equalizer.

• Death forces us to appreciate and prioritize.

• In a materialistic world, relationships are the only real currency.